EXCLUSIVE! Audi Q8 SUV coupe: First live pictures

Audi’s ever expanding Q line–up of luxury SUVs has just received a flagship SUV coupe variant called the Q8. Bookings for the Audi Q8 luxury SUV coupe are already open in Europe and here are exclusive live pictures of the car all the way from Germany. CarToq reader and friend Amit Ahirrao sent these pictures, snapped at an Audi dealership at Hamburg.

While the Audi Q8 has also been spotted testing in India, a launch timeline for this flagship SUV is yet to be revealed by the German company. If launched in India, the Audi Q8 is likely to be the brand’s most expensive SUV offering, and will take on vehicles, such as the Range Rover Sport. The Q8 uses the aluminium-intensive MLB platform that it shares with the Porsche Cayenne and the Bentley Bentayga, not to forget its cheaper sibling – the Audi Q7.

The Q8 is a five-seater, unlike the 7-seat Q7, but offers the same room on the inside. It’s shorter in overall length than the Q7 though, and this is down to the shorter overhangs at the front and rear. It’s 27-mm wider than the Q7 and this is mainly meant to offer additional stability at speed because the Audi Q8 is positioned as a sporty, pricier alterative to the Q7. In Europe, prices of the Audi Q8 start from 76,300 euros, which makes it a full 15,100 euros pricier than the base variant of the Q7.

Needless to say, its interiors are very luxurious. As for mechanicals, the Euro-spec Audi Q8 features a 3.0-liter six-cylinder turbocharged diesel engine with 282 bhp and 600 Nm on tap. The SUV also gets a mild hybrid system. Transmission consists of an 8-speed torque converter automatic with the Quattro all-wheel drive layout. Performance is impressive to say the least, with the 0 to 100 kmph sprint dispatched in 6.3 seconds, and a top speed of 245 Kmph.